


A Life Of Torment

by PiratePrincess



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: (not really sorry), Angst, F/M, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Loss, lots and lots of angst, sorry - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-20
Updated: 2016-06-20
Packaged: 2018-07-16 07:41:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7258573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PiratePrincess/pseuds/PiratePrincess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Everyone it was possible to lose, I lost! So yes, I do understand love, and I do understand what it is to lose those I love, so maybe you should tell your father and all the other do-gooders upstairs that!” </p><p>Captain Killian Jones' life has been full of pain and loss, more than anyone has ever known.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Life Of Torment

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! So, this is extremely angsty and nearly made me cry writing it, sorry for that...  
> It's way longer than I intended it to be, but once I started I had to get all of the angsty head cannons out of my head and it escalated slightly.  
> Hope you enjoy it! (Maybe enjoy isn't the right word, it is rather sad... (sorry again)) :)
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Once Upon A Time, which is just as well for Killian...

“Do you even know what it is to love someone? To give a damn about anyone but yourself? Even if a small part of you did care for Milah, that part was fleeting and has long since been destroyed by your evil, twisted ways. You’re nothing but a self-centred pirate. God knows what you get out of this, but there’ll be some selfish reason for you bringing us to Neverland. Whatever it is, it better not hurt my family or stop us getting Henry back or you’ll be sorry.”

For a few seconds, all that could be heard was David’s rapid breathing, breathless from his sudden rant, the rest of the motley crew in stunned silence.

“We’ll be arriving at the island in approximately twelve hours. You should all try and get some rest, you’ll need it.” Killian replied quietly before swiftly walking down the stairs that led to his cabin, softly closing the door behind him.

“That was a bit harsh, don’t you think?!”

“I was only saying what everyone else was thinking Emma.” David sighed.

“No you weren’t! All he did was flirt a bit with mom, which he does with anyone. For God’s sake, I caught him flirting with Granny the other day! It’s like his default, I’m not even sure he knows he’s doing it! For people who claim to be forgiving and all about second chances, you’re very quick to judge; just give the guy a break!” Emma seethed as she moved towards the stairs the pirate captain had just descended. She’d never seen him look so hopeless and dejected before, she wasn’t used to seeing underneath the cocky exterior, it worried her slightly. Not that her stupid judgemental family seemed to notice the damage that had been done.

 

***

 

In the few minutes Killian had been below deck he’d managed to down two bottles of rum and was onto his third. As he tried desperately to block out the painful thoughts vigorously trying to infiltrate his head there was a knock at the door which paused his spiralling mind.

“Go away!” He slurred. He hadn’t slurred in over a century.

“Hook? It’s me. Emma. Please let me in.” He span towards the door, nearly crashing to the floor as he did so, he hadn’t drank this much in such a short space of time… well ever if he were honest, but the unwanted thoughts and memories had never been this loud before either. “Look, my dad’s just worried about Henry, like we all are and…” The door swung open to reveal the most helpless and despairing face she had ever seen.

Hook walked back into the room, or more stumbled, and Emma hesitantly followed, closing the door behind her.

“So anyway… We’re all just a bit on edge and he didn’t mean what he said.”

“Yes he did.” Killian replied in a dejected tone, keeping his back to the blonde.

“We’ve lost Henry and it’s messing with us, surely you understand that?”

Slamming his bottle down on the desk the captain turned towards Emma, nearly losing his balance and stumbling slightly as he did so, making her jump.

“Of course I understand what it is to lose someone I love, which everyone seems to be forgetting. Why can’t you people believe that the only reason I’m doing this is to reunite a mother with her son?!”

“It’s ok Hook, I understand. Of course you know what it’s like to lose someone, you lost Milah.”

“If only it was just Milah” He mumbled to himself, running his hand down his face.

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing Swan. Just go back to your family and forget about me.” He responded, slumping into one of the chairs at his desk.

Emma slowly approached him, like you would approach a wounded animal, and slipped into the other chair.

“Who have you lost? I mean, no offence, but I didn’t think the pirate life left much opportunity for forming close connections with people.”

Killian abruptly stood and started pacing in front of the Saviour.

“Why do people think that I’ve always been a pirate?”

“Oh. I just assumed…”

“That’s the problem! Everyone always just assumes, and never bother to find out the truth! And in answer to your first question, _everyone I have ever loved!_ Everyone it was possible to lose, I lost! So yes, I do understand love, and I do understand what it is to lose those I love, so maybe you should tell your father and all the other do-gooders upstairs that!”

As if all of the energy had been sucked out of him with his outburst, he slid down the nearest wall, bringing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them, as if in an attempt to make himself as small as possible, as close to invisible as he could be. Emma’s heart broke for the man in front of her. She knew how bad bottling things up felt, and he’d clearly been bottling stuff up for centuries. They had hours until they reached Neverland and he clearly needed to talk.

“Talk to me.” Emma urged as she slid down the wall to join him, her knee knocking against his elbow in a comforting manner.

He glanced over at her, seeming to contemplate her request, “I can usually block them out, but it’s been getting harder and harder lately.”

“Block what out?”

“Thoughts of them, memories, the pain, all of it.” He said, his voice barely above a whisper, “I lost them all Emma; they all died in my arms.” He murmured as a lone tear streaked down his face, “Fallon, my mother, Max, Raven, Liam, Milah, Evelyn, Lillian and Will. All gone. Because I couldn’t protect them.”

 

***

 

_“Fine! I give in. You can take your sister sledging.” Adelaide Jones conceded with a fond smile. “Just be back before dark, and don’t go near that lake without your brother, you know how dangerous that can be.”_

_“Yes Mother!” The two siblings chimed excitedly, grabbing their coats and scarves and hurtling out of the door._

_“Come on Fallon, I’ll race you to the woods!”_

_“Not fair! You know I can’t run as fast as you Killy, hey! Wait for me!”_

_“Come on Fallon, you heard what Mother said, we need to be back before dark.”_

_“But Killyyyy.” The five year old pouted. Killian, being the older of the two by a year wasn’t going to fall for that that easily._

_“Liam’s not here so I’m in charge!” Killian stated, folding his arms like Liam always did when he was telling them what to do._

_“Just one more go? Pleeaaasssse.”_

_Killian sighed “Fine. Where do you want to go?”_

_“How about the really big hill behind Old Man McGregor’s house?”_

_“But Mother told us not to go down that one. It’s too close to the lake”_

_“She didn’t say we couldn’t sledge down that hill, she just said not to go near the lake, which we won’t. Not really near anyway.”_

_Killian frowned as he thought it over. What could it hurt? Besides, no-one would ever know._

_“Fine. One go, then we go home”_

_“Yay!” Fallon cried as she skipped off down the path towards the crumbling old house on the edge of town._

_“Alright, hold on tight Fallon!”_

_They both screamed in delight as they plummeted down the massive hill, but Killian began to panic as they hit a bump and swerved violently._

_“Killy! We’re going towards the lake!”_

_“Hold on!” came Killian’s panicked voice as they slid onto the frozen water, coming to a stop directly in the centre, “Are you alright?”_

_“I think so.” Fallon responded, her voice wobbling with unshed tears._

_“Alright. I think we should get off one at a time because the ice is pretty thin. You go first; you’re lightest so you’re less likely to break it.”_

_Carefully, Fallon slipped of the sledge and began to edge her way across the ice._

_“You’re almost there Fallon, keep going!”_

_A loud cracking noise filled the still evening air, followed by a short scream and a splash._

_“FALLON!”_

_Killian immediately jumped off the sledge, skidding over to the large hole in the ice, and before he could think twice, he followed her under. He could barely see anything and began wildly groping around, feeling for any sign of his sister. After having to return to the surface for breath twice, he finally found her and dragged up, heaving both of them onto the shore. He looked over to his sister’s prone body._

_“Fallon?”_

_“Fallon!”_

_Trying not to panic, he remembered back to the previous summer, when his mother had had to resuscitate Mrs Carlson’s son. He quickly went about repeating the actions he’d seen his mother use._

_He didn’t know how much later it was when he stopped, but it felt like hours, and it was now pitch black outside. With tears streaming down his young face, he dragged Fallon’s freezing body into his arms, barely noticing how cold he himself had gotten. “I’m so sorry Fallon! Please come back.” He sobbed._

_Killian didn’t know how long he sat there before he heard a distant voice calling his name, it could have been minutes or hours. He was numb to everything. Seconds later, a hand landed on his shoulder, “Killian?”_

_Killian looked up to find the worried face of his brother looking back down at him, “I’ve been looking everywhere for you, where have you... Oh God! No! Please tell me she’s not…” Liam gasped, stumbling backwards as he caught sight of what his little brother was huddled over._

_“What happened?!”_

_“I. I couldn’t. I tried to save her. But I couldn’t.” Killian stuttered through his tears._

_Liam gently prised the young boy’s arms from around his sister and lifted him into his own._

_“What are you doing? We can’t leave her here alone!”_

_“I’m taking you home before you catch your death. I’m not losing you tonight as well! I promise I’ll come back for her.”_

_With great effort Liam began to trudge back through the snow as Killian buried his face in his brother’s shoulder, wishing he could undo the horrific events of the evening._

***

 

 _The illness hit without warning, exactly a year after the death of her beloved daughter, taking down most of the town overnight, including her youngest son. For days she tirelessly nursed him back to health, no matter the risks to her own wellbeing because Adelaide Jones_ would not _lose another child._

_Killian was one of two people who managed to survive the illness, while it took the lives of 56 others, but it wasn’t done there. Merely the day after he had been given the all clear, his mother came down with the illness and being one of the only people in town no longer at risk from getting sick he now had to nurse her back to health, as she had done for him, even if he was only seven years old._

_Five days later his mother’s condition had only worsened._

_“Tell me what to do to help you! How did you help me? What am I doing wrong?”_

_“Calm down Killian.” His mother rasped, “You’re not doing anything wrong, it’s just my time, that’s all.”_

_“No.” Killian whispered._

_“There is one thing you can do for me.”_

_“Anything” Killian replied, focusing all of his attention on his ailing Mother._

_“Come and give your mother a cuddle.” She responded with a weak smile._

_Killian immediately clambered onto the bed, settling down in the comfort of his mother’s arms._

_“Just remember Killian, I will always love you, and I will always be proud of you, my little munchkin.”_

_Killian smiled at the familiar pet name and looked up at his mother, just in time to see her eyes close for the last time._

_“Mother? Mother! Wake up! WAKE UP! PLEASE WAKE UP!”_

_The door swung open as Liam burst into the room, “Killian? What’s wrong?”_

_Killian continued to cry and shout at his mother’s prone body as Liam went up behind him and grabbed him by the waist, carrying him kicking and screaming from the room before they both collapsed in a heap at the top of the stairs, tears streaming down the older boys face as he cradled his trembling brother._

***

 

There was a brief pause, and silence filled the cabin as Emma took in the awful stories from the pirate’s childhood.

“The day after my Mother’s funeral was Liam’s seventeenth birthday and he left to join the navy. It’s all he’d ever wanted to do.”

“What about you?”

“He left me with our neighbours. They’d always had a soft spot for him as a child but never liked me much. It only took a couple of days to figure out that they’d only offered to look after me to get my brothers commission, which he was going to send home to them to keep me. About a week later, my father returned to town after he’d heard news of my mother’s death. He was a pirate captain and had left us when I was just three. But he’d come back for me. He offered me a place on his ship and of course I jumped at the chance of having a family again.  I was so naïve.”

“What do you mean?”

“He just wanted free labour. Never cared about me at all. He knew how much I wanted a family and he exploited that. He let his crew abuse me on an almost daily basis and couldn’t have cared less, no matter how many times I begged him to make them stop. I thought it was my fault. That I was unlovable. Maybe even cursed. I thought that if I just tried hard enough, I could make him see that I was worth loving. It wasn’t until three years later when he abandoned me again that I gave up hope on that stupid, naïve dream. Someone had tipped off the authorities that there were pirates in town and while he and his godforsaken crew escaped, they left me to the noose.”

“How could he do that?! You were his son!”

“He was never my father, not really. There was another pirate captain, Redbeard, Max. We’d often see him when we docked and I’d spend as much time with him as possible. He knew what was going on with my father’s crew and often offered me a place on his ship, but I refused because I wouldn’t give up on Davy bloody Jones.”

“Wait. Your father was _Davy Jones?!_ ”

“Aye. What of it?” He asked, gazing at her with confused, red rimmed eyes.

“Nothing. It doesn’t matter. Sorry, carry on.”

“Max saved me that day. He’d heard about what had happened and saved me seconds before I was to hang. He took me in and I sailed with him for a year, finally learned what it was like to have a real father.”

“What happened?”

“My real father.” He replied darkly.

 

***

 

_Davy Jones’ crew quickly overpowered the crew of The Black Falcon and he soon had the captain on his knees before him._

_“Well, well, well, if it isn’t the man who stole my son” Jones sneered._

_“You mean rescued him after you abandoned him to the noose” Captain Redbeard spat._

_“Abandoned him?” The despicable pirate captain gasped in mock offence, “Do you really think me capable of such a thing?” The crew of The Flying Dutchman cackled._

_“Untie me you coward and face me like a man, instead of the snivelling toad you are.”_

_Davy Jones’ face turned stony as he held his sword to the other man’s neck._

_“I’m not here for you.” He growled, “Where’s the boy?”_

_In a panic, Killian stumbled out from behind the stack of crates he’d been hiding behind, “I’m here! You can have me, just let Max and the crew go!”_

_“Oh I don’t want to take you with me.” Davy grinned maliciously, “I just wanted to give you some fatherly advice. Never. Try. To. Replace. Me.” And with a flick of his wrist he slit Redbeard’s throat._

_“NO!” Killian cried, stumbling over to his father figure, catching him as he fell forward, gargling, with blood spewing from his neck. Like ghosts, the crew of The Flying Dutchman departed. Leaving the mournful scene behind._

***

“The crew were terrified after what happened to their captain. They saw me as a threat, so they dropped me off at the nearest port.”

“If your father happens to have magically survived several centuries I’ll hunt him down and kill him.” Emma responded in a gravelly voice, caused by the tears that she had discretely shed throughout this heart breaking story.

“You’ll have to get in line.” Killian mumbled. He looked ashen.

“You don’t have to continue if this is too much.”

“No. I, I want to. I’ve never told anyone this and I’m failing miserably at keeping the memories at bay right now lass, so I should probably just let them out for once.” His voice wobbled as he gave her a small tear laced smile.

“Ok, when you’re ready.” She said, returning the smile and squeezing his arm.

 

“A few months after being left behind again I met a homeless girl my age, she was called Raven, she was one hell of a firecracker; you would have gotten along.” He smiled nostalgically, “She was the only person I’d met that wasn’t scared of me once they knew who I was, although it took me months to build up the courage to tell her the truth. She didn’t care at all, it was like I’d told her something trivial, like my favourite colour was green. We were together for years, going from town to town, living off whatever we could find. Turned out we could both sing, so we made enough to buy food from that. We were sixteen when we got caught in a Tavern brawl. We were just walking along the street, trying to find somewhere relatively sheltered to sleep for the night when the fight spilled out onto the street. I managed to drag her out of there and down an alley, but not before she got stabbed with a broken bottle. I didn’t even notice at first. Not until she collapsed, but it was too late. She bled out in a matter of minutes and there was nothing I could do but watch and try fruitlessly to stop the bleeding.”

 

For a few minutes all that could be heard was the waves lapping against the ship and Killian’s hitched breathing.

“A month later I turned 17 and enrolled with the navy. It was only by sheer dumb luck that I ended up on my brother’s ship, he was Captain by that point and within two years I’d built my way up to Lieutenant, the youngest in the navy’s history.” The pride was evident in his voice, along with the sadness. “Liam was so proud.” He whispered.

“ _You_ were in the _navy_?”

“Don’t sound so surprised love” a ghost of his usual smirk coloured his face.

“Just didn’t have you pegged as the following orders type.”

“Aye” he smiled, “I’ll only follow orders from people I trust. Haven’t trusted anyone in a long time is all. The king we served under sent us on a special mission, a mission that was supposed to bring peace to the kingdom and glory to the Jones brothers.” he scoffed, “What a lie that was.”

“What was the mission?” Emma prompted.

“We were given a Pegasus sail to take us to Neverland to find a cure for all ails. Turned out that cure was the deadliest poison ever known; dreamshade. We met Pan when we first arrived and he warned us, but Liam didn’t believe him. Once we found it I could tell something was off. It even looked deadly. But Liam trusted the king implicitly. I kept on at him until he felt he had to prove it to me and cut himself with one of the thorns. For a second we thought he was fine, then he collapsed. That’s when Pan appeared saying that there was a cure; a magic spring that could cure him. He said that there was a price and not to leave the island unless I was willing to pay it. I got Liam the cure and he was fine. I tried to find Pan so that I could pay him what he wanted, but he was gone.”

“When we got back to the ship we started a plan to reveal our king’s cowardice, but when we touched down in the enchanted forest Liam collapsed. I held him in my arms as he died just seconds later. There was nothing I could do.” Tears began to run down his face in earnest as Emma pulled him to her, his head resting on her shoulder, “That was Pan’s price, if Liam left, he died.”

“I’m so sorry Killian.”

“That’s when I became a pirate. I burned the Pegasus flag so that no-one could get back to Neverland and decided to sail under the crimson flag. I refused to serve a corrupt king any longer. That kingdom took my brother, so I decided to take everything I could from it, starting with this ship. Probably not my wisest decision, but I saw no other option.”

“I get why you did it. Can’t say I would have done any different.”

 

A few minutes later Killian continued in a rasping voice, “It was a few years later that I met Milah. She was miserable with her life and hated her husband so asked to sail away with me. If it hadn’t been for her son I would have said yes straight away. There was another ship in port that day and she threatened to run away with them. I knew the type though; just like my father’s crew, so of course I agreed. I wouldn’t have that on my conscience. I thought she’d regret leaving her son and want to go back in a few weeks, but a few weeks turned into a few years and we fell in love. Don’t get me wrong, she missed Bae with all her heart, but she felt that she couldn’t be the mother he deserved when she was constantly so miserable. She believed Rumpelstiltskin to be a good father, despite everything, and thought Bae would be better off without her. I tried to convince her that we could be a family multiple times, but it wasn’t until… until Evelyn that she believed we could actually do it.”

She was scared to ask, but she knew he needed this, “Evelyn?” she gently inquired.

“Milah fell pregnant.” Emma’s grip on him tightened, dread for where this was headed building, “She found out about two months in but didn’t tell me for a couple of weeks, when she was sure. I’d never been happier. A family was all I’d ever wanted. I was convinced it would be a girl so we decided to name her after Milah’s younger sister, who died when they were children.”

“Evelyn.” Emma murmured.

“Aye. We agreed to go back for Bae, to be a family. I was even going to give up piracy and hand over captaincy of the Jolly to my second, Will. But then the crocodile ripped out her heart and snuffed out both of their lives.”

Emma didn’t know what to say. There was nothing that could be said. No matter how many times she thought his story couldn’t get worse, it did. So she remained silent, her hand carded through his hair as tears continued to silently fall down both of their cheeks.

 

A few minutes later, Emma broke the silence.

“That’s when you returned to Neverland?”

“Aye. I knew it would take a long time to find a way to kill Rumpelstiltskin, so I needed a way to live as long as it would take. I lost myself in the grief, and my thirst for revenge. In the darkness. I’ll never forgive myself for that, for the pain I’ve caused.”

“There were times when I thought I could give up my revenge. Bae came to Neverland not long after I arrived. We fished him out from the water and when he told me his name I knew it was Milah’s Bae, he looked so much like her. I decided to give up on my revenge and stay true to our plans to be a family, Bae even unwittingly told me how to kill the Dark One but I still wanted nothing more than to be a family with him, but Bae found out who I was and refused to stay; demanded to leave the ship. I couldn’t change his mind and thought he’d be safer with The Lost Boys than on his own, so I handed him over to Pan. It’s one of my biggest regrets.”

“You tried your best.”

“No. I could have tried harder, but I let myself be once again overcome by my thirst for revenge. That’s a mistake I refuse to make again. All I want is to be Killian Jones again. I’ve never hated anyone as much as I hate Captain Hook, as much as I hate myself.”

“Captain Hook wouldn’t have put aside everything he’s worked for, for a boy he didn’t even know. Killian Jones did. Captain Hook is long gone.” Emma said with absolute certainty.

“I hope you’re right lass.” He sighed.

“You said there were times you thought you could give up your revenge. Plural. When else did you contemplate it?”

“Years later I found a young girl, only 8 years old, unconscious on the beach. I nursed her back to health and hid her from Pan for a year. Lillian was like a daughter to me, and I know for a fact that the crew saw her as a little sister they had to protect at all costs.” He chuckled slightly, “She had everyone wrapped around her dainty little finger. The Lost Boys got wind of her, but before they got word back to Pan I managed to leave Neverland on the latest errand Pan had sent us on. We were bound to the island until Pan released us, but Lilly could escape. I left her in the care of a kind old woman in the town we were docked in and she promised to take care of her. It was one of the hardest things I’d ever done, but I had to protect her at all costs.”

 

***

 

_“Ah Felix, what a pleasant surprise!”_

_“Wish I could say the same Hook. Where’s the girl?” Felix sneered._

_“Straight to the point as always Felix, but I’m afraid I have no idea what you’re talking about, just us men on this ship. Certainly no girls!” The crew broke into raucous laughter._

_“Then you won’t mind if we take a look around.”_

_“Be my guest.” Killian sniggered, giving a mocking bow._

_Minutes later a triumphant Felix emerged from below deck with a wriggling Lillian, “Let me go!”_

_The colour drained from Killian’s face as his breath left him. No. This couldn’t be happening. She was safe with Mary in the Enchanted Forest._

_“Lilly? What are you doing here?!” He cried._

_“Looks like you’ve got a little stow away Captain.” Came a cold voice from his right._

_“Pan.” Killian spat._

_“Hook.” Pan nodded with a grin._

_Felix dragged Lilly to where Pan was standing and the Captain lunged forwards, but before he could reach the child he saw as a daughter Pan’s magic held him back._

_“Let her go Pan! She’s done nothing to you!”_

_“No, but you have. You tried to keep secrets from me Captain, and that is not acceptable. Now you’ll pay for your mistake. And what better way to make you pay than to take something you love from you?”_

_“No! Please! I’m begging you, don’t hurt her! I’ll do anything you want, just let her go!” Hook cried desperately._

_Pan grinned wickedly as he thrust his hand into the young girl’s chest._

_No. Anything but this! He couldn’t go through this again!_

_Pan pulled the pure red, pulsing heart out and without hesitation crushed it to dust, letting the pirate go just in time to catch the child’s body before it hit the deck._

***

 

At this point Killian was sobbing again, tears rolling down Emma’s face as well, while she rubbed soothing circles into his heaving back.

 

She didn’t know how long they sat like that, but eventually his tears subsided again.

“The only person who got me through that with my sanity intact was Will and now he’s gone too. Because I couldn’t save him.” Killian whispered.

“Who was Will?”

“He was on my brother’s original crew, one of his closest friends, and after everything that happened, my closest friend too.”

 

***

 

_They’d been walking through the woods for a couple of hours when The Lost Boys came out of nowhere, poisoned arrows at the ready. It was a short battle, but not without its casualties. An arrow had been headed straight for Killian when Will dived in front of him, the arrow lodging deep within his chest._

_“Will!” Killian cried, falling to his knees beside his fallen friend, “Just, just hold on! We’ll get you to the spring, just hold on.” He tried to lift him when Will cried out in pain._

_“Killian! Stop. It’s too late, we’ll never make it in time, Deadman’s Peak is miles away and I have minutes at most.”_

_“I won’t lose you too. You’re all I have left.” Killian whispered, tears building in his eyes._

_“Be strong Captain,” Will gasped, “and promise me something.”_

_“Anything.” Killian swallowed._

_“Don’t lose Killian Jones forever. I know he’s still in there, I’ve seen him. Just don’t let my death bury him for good. I have faith that one day you’ll find yourself again.” And with that the loyal sailor breathed his last breath and his Captain allowed the tears to fall freely down his face._

***

 

“A few years later Pan got sick of playing with me and released my crew and me from Neverland. We were finally free to leave and never come back on the condition that if we did return we would never leave again.”

“And you still came back for us?”

“Of course love, I couldn’t stand by and watch you lose your son.”

“Thank you.” Emma said, with as much sincerity as she could put into the words.

“No thanks needed love.”

“After Neverland I made various deals with The Evil Queen and her mother to get my revenge on Rumpelstiltskin. You know pretty much all of that, and here we are today.”

 

They sat together in silence, wrapped in each other’s arms, taking comfort from each other, until it was rudely interrupted by an irate prince bursting into the room.

“What the hell are you doing with my daughter Hook? You’ve been in here for hours!” His long planned tirade trailed off as he took the pair in. Both with tear stained faces, the pirate cradled in his daughters arms, like a child after a nightmare. “I’ll just… leave you two to it.” He muttered sheepishly, slowly backing out of the room.

“Yeah, you should do that.” Emma said glaring angrily at her father.

“He means well lass” Killian said softly as the door closed behind the prince, raising his head to look at the blonde.

“I know, but it’s probably a bit late for the whole overprotective father routine, don’t you think?”

Killian laughed quietly, “Aye lass, probably. But in all seriousness, treasure it, no matter how annoying it gets.”

“Don’t worry I will” she replied with a warm smile, “You’re not alone anymore Killian, I can promise you that. You’ve got me, and although the others are too stubborn to see it yet, I know that you’ll have them too before much longer.”

“I really hope so lass. I want nothing more.”

He gently lay his head back on Emma’s shoulder, both of them savouring the quiet before the storm; before they had to begin the gruelling journey to rescue Henry. It would be beyond hard, but they had each other and there was no way in hell they were ever giving up.

**Author's Note:**

> *Hides behind sofa* Don't kill me!  
> Hope you enjoyed? ;)  
> I'd love any feedback you can give, as I'm pretty new to this whole writing thing, thanks! :)


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